Bill Babler

I haven’t caught any as deep as 15’. I’ve been keeping my boat 15/17 feet. Eric told me to keep the boat in 20’ so I’m probably driving over some. We were in there at 0700, it was my first stop. We had 9 in there and only made a single pass. All prespawn. I’m guessing 4’ to 8’ for most all for me.

Jim had been seeing our post catching a few fish and wanted to give it a whirl. So, in old Bob Barker lingo, I said “come on down”. Wanted to catch some Big Small Jaw’s and I think he accomplished that. Fished 11 locations from 0700 till 2:30 and caught multiple fish on all locations but 1. Caught them all swimming the 2.8 on a 1/4 oz. Head. Only caught 1 SM that was spawned out. And all the K’s were ripe and not close to being ready. Surface temps in that same 65 degree range with Ice Tea color water. Great to see Jim and we had a blast today.

Neighbor and I started where I had the topwater bite yesterday. 0700 start with surface temps at 65.6. Water Ice Tea color. They were not on top, but DEEP. School after school of shad anywhere from 26’ to 40’. Wolf Packs of pre-spawn Big K’s chasing them. Didn’t restart the boat till 11:00. Have no idea how many, but caught the majority on FFS, shaking a minnow. 1/2 oz. Dixie Jet jigging spoon worked too along with a 2.8 Keitech. These 2 K’s were 18”. Really to many 15” plus to keep track of. Those 2 were the longest.

😁

Haven’t fished up the White out of SK all year. I did this morning starting at 6:30 to a surface temp of 65 degrees. Saw fish chasing at the mouth of the Kings and stopped. First topwater fish of the year on the surge Shad. Caught 8 with one keep. Really it was tough and I junk fished all morning. Jig, floating worm, top water, swimbait, senko and a C-rig. Moss seems to be gone except if you hit wood. Had 15 keepers, but biggest was a 17” LM I caught on a floating worm. Nothing had spawned all full of eggs. I’m sure the LM was up there to do the deed. Lots of fish on wood out to 18’ and also 2’. I got super Lucky. Scoped a pile in 20’ that was totally loaded and there was a shad school about 20’ between me and the pile. I swam a GP 2.8 over the pile and hooked up. That fish brought at least 25 more fish out of that tree and right into the shad school. It was totally crazy. It was chaos, and I couldn’t get them unhooked fast enough. I just busted out laughing. That’s the first time that has ever happened to me. When your fishing that type of structure you may get 1-2-3 but if they come to the boat or you lose one your done. I got so friggin lucky. I need to take pictures if this stuff, but when they’re biting it’s hard not to do the catching. I had maybe 25 in a 6 hr. Morning, and I didn’t earn most of them.

They have had 5 keepers since 12:30. All 2 # SM. Flats around Baxter and Red Barn. Gizzard Shad 2.8. Just slow swimming the little swimbait. Wheeler was slow getting those stump row fish to bite, and really I thought they might be used up. He proved me wrong. He really didn’t have anything else yet, but they are not biting for anyone except my neighbor😁🤣🤣

Neighbor and his daughter went out at 12:30. Fishing flat gravel and have had 4 nice SM. Swimming a 2.8 Keitech. I have not seen a single pro do that this week. Unreal.

He did way better than I thought he would. Now, is the test. Did he mark enough for today. I thought he might have caught a couple more in the second and third yesterday to not drop so far if he was on them. Not a cloud in the sky and cold the second day after a front. I would struggle. Never underestimate any of these guys.

I might be wrong🤪🤪🤪

Wheeler is starting in the stump row. It might be totally beat up. We’ll see. He is in trouble. I don’t think he found anything else yesterday afternoon.

I like him too Jeff. It would be a Massive win for him. If Gill gets his FFS fish to bite I think he has the best chance. He does way, way over analyze it. I hate to hear him talk about it. I’m not counting out DC. His scope fish have not bit but like Gill, after the scope period he has a solid tree pattern. If his scope fish bite in the least, number 4 is a possibility.

1st. Thru 4th. Should end up with 100 pounds. 90 plus let’s say Depends on how many Wheeler pulls the trigger on when he runs his scope. I believe he said the 3rd. Period, if he is safe. I think if he is safe, he will back off. Gill will stumble on enough in the next 5 hours NP. I think Birge and Shuffield will keep catching them. Ehrler is on a non-repeatable top water bite so he may just keep catching them.

The pocket Birge is fishing looks like a traditional KC small mouth pocket but for some reason it really holds LM. Quite a bit of pole timber on the left bank going in that is not visible. By the time Birge is done, Dock will have to move to Shell Knob. I love that house he just caught the LM in front of, but I hate Joe Bald Rd.

Dock, Birge is on your junk.

Your water is to clear. I was in the same boat. Had about 1/2 a dozen on it till this week and added 5 keeps and a couple of shorts in the tannic water. Here is the deal however. I think Zack Birge may be throwing it in clear water around docks and he is for sure catching them. They’ll have a camera with him today and I’m very anxious to see what he is doing as he is a total power fisherman.

Yep, as soon as he left it was probably like an ocean drag net of Keitech’s over it. it’s about a city block long and 50 yards wide. Gill really didn’t have many boats on him. Some family and maybe a couple others. He did run from Long Creek to Campbell Point, that’s a run, especially with these gas prices and if you were not predisposed where he was going you would have most probably lost him. Long Creek Marina to Hobbs is 50 miles. That’s 100 miles if you followed from the start. That would put a nice dent in the Visa Bill.

Really learned something yesterday. I was throwing that chatterbait 4-6 ft. off the bank The guys catching them in it were bouncing it off the shoreline. I was way off and the fish were way shallower than I was fishing after my quick morning bite. They were catching them 2/3 ft deep. Yikes!

Mark Davis won on a wiggle wart in Rock Creek, right at the mouth. It was a flood year and he was throwing it right where the dirty water met the clear. Man he was just flat stacking them. He threw the hard head in Big Creek, on the run out right in front of Big Creek Resort. I just hammered them there this year it was one of the only places up here you could touch the bottom without bringing back a green fur ball Like Jeff ever since watching him with that hard head I’ve had one tied on. Mike M. also won one here using the hard head a bit. He mostly caught them on a bigger swimbait but caught a lot on it The guys in the White fishing the senko wacky style are pretty much picking it up and putting in down. Mark likes to fish it like a Texas rig worm with a small bullet weight, instead of free sinking wacky. Scope period is going to be interesting today with the wind and beating on them yesterday. Gill said he wasn’t fishing anything today he fished yesterday. Can’t wait to see where he is. I think he is in command as I believe Wheeler used up the stump row fish and I’m sure as soon as he left it, it was totally hammered. I took very few guide trips out of old 86 that it wasn’t my first stop and all the Big Cedar Guides run there first thing. There are lots of SM there so he might go back I have no idea where Zack Birge is but he is on them and is Hot as Fire. He was in clear water, and really they only had him on for a couple of short clips

Your right and I wouldn’t be much. I am really surprised by Michael Neil. I know he is not afraid of clear water. He practiced just like Evers. I saw him every practice in the back of steep pockets, one after the other in the point 9 to Big Creek area.

I’m kind of surprised by Evers. I don’t think he has ever done well here, and I didn’t like his practice. He came on in the 2-3 periods so he may be on to something. With the weather change on the way, it’s going to be interesting tomorrow.

Point 9 to SK on the flat stuff is loaded. He had a heyday on CP swim beach. They live there. Spawn or no spawn. Then Hobbs Hollow, probably one of the biggest community holes at SK. Right in front of my house He then fished the small pockets back toward KC with a senko. If he would have stayed on the main lake gravel with a swim bait he would have busted 100 pounds.

Right now for some reason they have no clue. It’s kind of funny. In JT’s Table Rock blog he told them where to fish. Said flat gravel and really no one is on it. I’ll flat tell you Olliverson would have caught 100 pounds today. Latter part of the 2nd. and 3rd. period with the wind blowing on that gravel it would have been a catch fest. Not only Jaws, but the K’s would have been all over it Also those timbered rocky cuts with wind the good fish would have been on a Magdraft BIG TIME. These guys just flat hate clear water. Just have to be up the James in the tannic stuff. Gill did fine flipping his senko in the clear pockets but they left a lot of fish swimming. Didn’t watch the last hour, mowed the grass I do believe Wheeler ran to the Kings he said he ran an hour from Take off

Said he ran an hour. I planted some tomatoes so I’ll have to see.

Strader fished the first period where he has been all week He is now on the bluff going into the James If you see tea color water they are in the James. I would not be doing anything they are doing. With this wind the SM would be chewing on FLAT GRAVEL. There are lots of ways to catch fish here and right now fishing windy flat gravel is a no brainer. Just not something they do. Never saw an MLF boat on it all week, while the locals hammered them on it. With this heat the big K’s will be pulling up into the flat pockets this afternoon.

OK, here it is; Wheeler fishing the dam shaking a minnow. All community holes. Gill, Campbell Point Swim Beach and Hobbs Hollow, community holes. Coke Floyd. James River Schoolhouse. Chatter bait. About where I was yesterday. Big difference I learned something. He is right on the bank 3’ of water. I was to deep. Ehrler Clevenger Island then I don’t know. Connell all over the place. Strader . Same bluff up the White I saw him on 2 days this week. Cooper Big Indian Trace Hollow. Little Jones Little Indian Baxter. Evers and Neil. Saw them everyday this week in the back of pockets fishing bedding fish. Don’t think that will play. I have not been using FFS, without it go into the flat pockets and the flat windy banks and cast a swimbait. Dru Gill is in Spotted Bass and Small Heaven. They are on exactly what he is fishing. If he just throws a swimbait there he will catch 20 pounds this period.